A court said today that a fight involving several people during the feast of St Cajetan on August 10, 2008, had escalated 'because of police mismanagement'.

The decision was given as the court acquitted 15 people of having caused the fight resisted or assaulted the police and damaged police cars.

Magistrate Audrey Demicoli said that after she examined the evidence, the court was of the view that the accused had managed to prove to the grade of probability their version of events, particularly that the situation had escalated because of police mismanagement 'and nothing else'.

The court said it had noted discrepancies in evidence given by the policemen who went to the scene.

A superintendent and two police inspectors had given different reasons as to what had led to a considerable number of policemen being sent to Giovanni Barbara Street, where the incident took place. There were also different police versions of the incident.

The court had heard policemen say that the incident was sparked by trouble between two families, while others said the cause was loud music.

The court noted that, in his evidence, Superintendent Carmelo Bartolo said that when the police arrived on the scene the situation was calm.

In the court's opinion, matters escalated because of the way the police intervened, particularly the undue enthusiasm by a police major and mismanagement of the situation by other policemen.

The court said there was a chain reaction of events when the police arrested one of the accused, Jason James Agius, after which the police arrested a number of people without apparent reason other than that they were protesting because members of their families had been arrested without justification.

The court said that had the police stayed on site to ensure that the situation remained calm, and had they not issued orders for the people to disperse and leave, this trouble would have been avoided.

The court noted that Major Anthony Lia had said that he had ordered Jason James Agius to disperse the people when it was clear that Mr Agius could control only his own movements but not that of the other people.

It would have been understandable had Major Lia told Mr Agius to close his bar so that the people would leave, since that was something which he could actually do. The prosecution would then have been justified in arguing that Mr Agius had not obeyed police orders.

However, the court felt the police were unjustified in having arrested all of Mr Abela's family without reason.

The court said the police had added fuel to the fire by needless arrests in what they thought was a way to control the situation which Supt Bartolo had said was calm.

The court also criticised the 'civilised' way how one of the accused - Alishia Mintoff -  had been arrested. She was a mother who had been dragged from behind a pushchair, leaving the pushchair and the baby in the middle of the road.

The court said that even the charges of disturbing the peace and failure to obey police orders had not been proved, and the fact that there were protests against unjustified attacks did not fall within this category.

The only charge that had been proven was that Marouska Attard had escaped police custody at Hamrun police station. In view of the manner of her arrest, the court condemned her to a conditional discharge. 

The accused were Carmel Abela, Angelino Abela, Jonathan Abela, Johan Abela, Anthony Abela, Jason James Agius, Heathcliffe Schembri, James Vella, Dylon Vella, John Mamo, Nazzareno Gatt, Marouska Attard and Kelsey Vella.

ACCUSED CLAIM UNJUSTIFIED ARREST

In their evidence, Carmelo, Angelino and Anthony Abela had told the court that when the morning band march ended they were standing close to Inspector Ramon Mercieca.

They then went home and had been on the verandah when a police van drove up and Major Lia asked for one of the other accused. Carmelo Abela said the major pointed at him and warned him that unless he went inside, he would arrest him.  When Mr Abela asked why, Supt Bartolo and four policemen turned up, pushed him against a wall and handcuffed him.

Angelo and Anthony Abela said the police started using pepper spray for no reason.

Anthony Abela said the officer who arrested him had said he had orders to arrest all the members of the family, a statement confirmed by Johan Abela, who was also arrested on the verandah.

Jonathan Abela said he was at his grandmother's house studying and went outside when he heard a disturbance. He saw his uncle being arrested and when he asked Inspector Tonna what was happening he was arrested as well.

Heathcliffe Schembri said he had gone to the feast with his partner and their two-year-old daughter, who was in a pushchair. As he was heading for his car after the march, Major Lia told him to move off. He replied that he was going for his car, whereupon some six policemen pushed him against another car and one of them bit him. He was then arrested.

INFANT LEFT IN ROAD AS MOTHER IS ARRESTED

Alishia Mintoff and Carmela Mintoff said they were arrested after protesting to the police when Mr Schembri was arrested. Mr Mintoff said she had her daughter with her in a pushchair. The police dragged her away from the pushchair, leaving the infant behind.

Kelsey Vella said she was dragged by the police and was almost completely undressed by the police after she protested about the arrests.